New Delhi, February 17 A Delhi Motor Accident Claims Tribunal has awarded Rs 1.53 crore in compensation to the family of a 48-year-old Defence Ministry employee who was killed in a road accident in 2022.
Presiding Officer Vijay Kumar Jha was hearing a claim petition filed by the family of Mukesh Kumar Kashyap, who was working as a Foreman with the Aeronautical Quality Assurance Wing (Armament) for the Ministry of Defence's Directorate General of Aeronautical Quality Assurance (DGAQA).
Kashyap was returning home from work on his motorcycle when another motorcycle, allegedly driven at high speed and on the wrong side of the road, collided head-on with his two-wheeler on May 30, 2022.
He sustained grievous injuries and was declared dead at a local hospital.
In an order dated February 16, the tribunal said, "The petitioners have been able to prove, on the preponderance of probabilities, that the accident occurred due to the rash and negligent driving of the offending vehicle by respondent no. 1 (the motorcyclist), and that resulted in fatal injuries to the deceased."
The insurance company under which the motorcycle was insured had alleged that the motorcyclist who hit the deceased was under the influence of alcohol.
"The opinion of the doctor in the MLC (Medico-Legal Case) of Sonu Kumar (the motorcyclist) that he was under the influence of alcohol is primarily an opinion that is not admissible in evidence. Generally, any decision is made on proved facts which are legally admissible," the tribunal said.
It then awarded Rs 1.53 crore to the family of the deceased under various heads.
However, the tribunal granted the insurer the liberty to recover the awarded amount from the driver and vehicle owner if it is subsequently proved that the driver’s blood alcohol level exceeded the permissible limit at the time of the accident.